The Cuban Parliament’s International Relations Commission issued a statement this July 11, as deputies meet to discuss the nation’s development in the lead up to the Ninth Period of Ordinary Sessions of the Eighth Legislature of the National Assembly of People’s Power (ANPP)

Vienna, Jun 19 (Prensa Latina) Cuba maintains its willingness to continue a respectful dialogue and cooperation in matters of common interest with the United States, and to negotiate pending bilateral issues, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez stressed here on Monday.

In a press conference in Austria, the Cuban minister reaffirmed that such dialogue must take place on the basis of equality, reciprocity and absolute respect for our sovereignty and independence.

‘As proved by the achievements made over the past two years, Cuba and the United States can cooperate and coexist in a civilized way, respecting the deep differences between their governments and promoting everything that benefits both nations and peoples,’ Rodriguez underlined.

Havana, Cuba, Jun 16 (ACN) On June 16th, 2017, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, in a speech full of hostile rhetoric, that recalled the times of open confrontation against our country, announced in a theater in Miami its government’s policy towards Cuba which reverts advances in the last two years after December 17th of 2014 by Presidents Raul Castro and Barack Obama announcing the decision of reestablishing diplomatic relations and began a process towards the normalization of bilateral ties.

In what constitutes a fall back in relations between the two countries, Trump gave a speech and signed a policy directive entitled “Presidential Memorandum of National Security on the Tightening of the Policy of the United States Towards Cuba”, disposing the elimination of the educational ¨people to people¨ exchanges to individuals and major control of US travelers to Cuba in addition to prohibiting economic, commercial and financial transactions of US companies with their Cuban counterparts tied with the Revolutionary Armed Forces and intelligence and security services, with the objective of depriving them of earnings. The US President justified the policy with alleged concerns on the human rights situation in Cuba and the need to strictly apply the laws of the blockade, conditioning its lifting if our country carries out inherent changes to its constitutional order.

Trump repealed the Presidential Directive of the policy of “Normalization of relations between the United States and Cuba”, issued by President Obama on October 14th 2016, of which, although, it did not hide the interference character of the US policy, nor the objective of advancing its interests in acquiring changes in the economic, political and social order of our country, had recognized the independence, sovereignty and self-determination of Cuba and the Cuban government like a legitimate and equal speaker, as well as the benefits reported by both countries and peoples in a civilized relationship within the great differences between both governments. He also admitted that the blockade was an obsolete policy that had to be eliminated.

The Government of the United States once again has resorted to coercive methods of the past, adopting measures to reinforce the blockade valid since February of 1962, which not only inflicted damages and deprivation to the Cuban people and constitutes undeniable obstacles to the development of our economy, but also affects the sovereignty and interests of other countries, promoting international condemnation.

The announced measures imposes additional obstacles to the very restricted opportunities that the US business sector had to trade and invest in Cuba.